Beating the Heat

I don't know about where you live, but it has been hot here in Texas. Our poor little AC can't even keep up with the heat by mid-afternoon. Lately we've had all our fans on high, all our blinds closed and our blackout curtains drawn by lunchtime just trying to keep our poor little house from heating up to 80 degrees before supper time! Thankfully the floor fans and ceiling fans really help the AC out, and overall we've been able to keep the house cool.

This has, however, brought about a major change in our eating habits. We do not eat out often, maybe once every couple weeks, so we cook at home a lot. But with the heat the way it's been, turning the oven on has not been an option, either. We have, therefore, turned to two alternative forms of cooking: crock pot cooking and grilling out often.

I wanted to share a couple recipes from the crock pot that we have really enjoyed. The first is a crock pot lasagna I found online. It is so yummy, you won't believe your taste buds! This recipe has a rating of 4.5 stars out of 5 by 350 different people, which tells you a lot right there. I always read reviews from those who have already tried a recipe. A highly rated recipe by that many people or more typically means it is going to be a good meal! One thing I did find from all the reviewers was a tip to add about 1-1.5 cups water around the edges of the lasagna before you cook to prevent it from burning/drying out. I did this and 4 hours later, it was the most fabulous lasagna I have had in a long time. Plus it is so easy to make.

Another recipe I made was one I kind of made up when I realized we were out of spaghetti noodles. I was going to make a cheesy chicken spaghetti but had to change things up a bit, so I improvised. Here's what I did. Take 3-4 uncooked chicken breasts and cut them into bite-sized pieces. Put them in your crock pot. Then add 1 can cream of mushroom (or cream of chicken, depending on your tastes) soup, 1 can chicken broth, 1/2 stick butter (for added yumminess), 1 can of rotel, and 1 cup of rice. Mix it all up a bit, put the lid on, and cook on low for 3-4 hours, depending on your crock pot. In the end you will have a lovely cheesy chicken and rice dish. I served it with a side of cooked spinach, but next time I might even toss some spinach in with it to let it cook in with the rest of the meal.

If you have any great crock pot recipes, I'd love to have them to try out!! Email me or leave a comment. We are definitely looking for more variety in our crock pot meals :)

Here are the ingredients for the Cheesy Chicken and Rice:
3-4 chicken breasts, cut into bite-sized pieces
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can chicken broth
1/2 stick butter
1 can rotel
1 cup rice